best phono preamps?

Jloveys, the reason for that is that you have to connect the phono section to your power amp, and control the volume somehow. A passive will not suit for this as it will behave as a tone control/dynamic compressor depending on the setting of the control.

One of the purposes of a proper linestage is in fact control of the interconnect cable. If this is done properly the quality and length of the cable will not be important! Obviously then if you are going to have a stand-alone phono section, this capability ought to be included or you have lost any benefit to simplification.

What we found is that the inclusion of the circuitry to make this so meant that a stand-alone phono section would have everything a full-function preamp would have except a couple of passive switches. IOW you might as well have the whole thing.

Interesting in theory, but then why my phonopreamps sound much clearer direct connected to the MC 275 than via the ARC LS 25 MKII ? Is it a linepreamp that is not well engineerd?

If you have separates, then the phono stage will usually have to incorporate a low impedance output stage, to make the unit compatible with a variety of linestages and so it can drive the cable itself. This means adding a cathode-follower (if tubes) or an emitter-follower (if solid state), an additional active device in the pathway, not to mention the sonic effect of the cable itself that Atmasphere and Raul mention. Cathode followers are problematic devices that inevitably add a touch of coloration, unless very carefully designed and implemented with an associated constant current source, etc. Why bother, when you can have it all on one chassis so the phono signal only has to go an inch or two to reach the linestage? The main potential advantage of separates is that it is easier to implement completely separate power supplies for each section, but this can also be achieved in well conceived all-in-one preamps, by using a separate PS chassis.

Jloveys, I do not like to make statements about a competitor's gear.

Well, in theory why have any separates at all? I mean a completely integrated source/amp/speaker so there are no cables anywhere. ;-)

In all honesty, I reserve the right to change my position if I ever get a chance to spend time with a full function Alaap in my system. Then I could really pick up on any differences in topology in a very controlled situation. However, as I make more and more changes/improvements to my system I have yet to find a point where I cannot hear more from the signal coming through my components. I haven't found any limit yet.

On the flip side, there is great benefit to me to be able to leave those other 6 tubes off if I'm just spinning CDs. I also opted for dual, stepped attenuators and no remote. This is why I think we have to look at the whole picture and not just concentrate on this one aspect. The more I learn in this hobby, the fewer absolutes I accept.